1. Field of the Invention
The present invention broadly relates to method and apparatus for joining a glass member to a second member composed of, for instance, glass or a metallic material, and more particularly, to solderable optical fiber splices, terminations and hermetic seals.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The splicing of optical fibers has, in the past, been accomplished using various techniques. A first technique forms the optical fiber splice within a sleeve which may be crimped, as in U.S. Pat. No. 3,768,146 issued to F. A. Braun et al on Oct. 30, 1973, to mutually align and mechanically secure the two fiber ends together.
A second technique places a bead of either an epoxy resin, glue, or other bonding and fixing agent around the joint to secure the butted ends of the two aligned optical fibers together as, for instance, shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,779,628 issued to F. P. Kapron et al on Dec. 18, 1973; and U.S. Pat. No. 3,900,245 issued to R. B. Dyott et al on Aug. 19, 1975.
The above-mentioned techniques can be interrelated as, for instance, disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,810,802 issued to P. H. Buhite et al on May 14, 1974 wherein two fibers are aligned collinearly in a hollow sleeve, a quantity of low melting point transparent thermoplastic is inserted in the sleeve at the junction of the two fibers, and heat is applied to melt the thermoplastic causing it to flow around the aligned ends and form the splice.
It is also known to use butt-welding to cause the aligned ends of two optical fibers to reach an elevated temperature sufficient to flow the materials together and form the splice.
Prior art compounds, as, for example, epoxy resins or index matching fluids, have been found to age and eventually deteriorate. Therefore, such compounds do not always possess sufficient long-term stability as may be desired, for instance, in communication systems. The problem, therefore, remaining is to provide methods for splicing or terminating glass members such as optical fibers which possess long-term stability under varying temperature and humidity.